The balloon pump can help improve the heart’s ability to pump blood as it needs to. Through a surgical procedure, the device is inserted through your leg into the heart. This is a short-term ...

The coronary arteries are the main blood vessels providing blood to the heart. Doctors use the term “angioplasty” to describe the insertion and inflation of a tiny balloon into the artery.

The procedure was adapted from angioplasty, where balloon catheters are used to dilate damaged or congested blood vessels near the heart. The surgery is fairly new, approved by the United States ...